Don't Wake Me if I'm Dreaming
by EndlessImmortal
Summary: What happens after the fateful night in the hotel? How will the Academy react? What does Adrain do? Read to find out..... R&R, no flames. Better than it sounds, I promise! SEQUAL TO DREAM WALKER!
1. Chapter 1 Revised

**Okay. So sorry about the short notice change thing, I just wasn't up to making a whole new story at the time. So after this is posted, that first chapter will be deleted, and this story will start. Got it? Reviews are STRONGLY appreciated, and I love all of you dearly. **

**ONE WEEK LATER**

"Mmm," I yawned, sitting up in bed. I swung my legs over the edge and stumbled to the bathroom. Grimacing at the reflection staring back at me, I splashed cold water on my face and ran a brush through my knotted hair. Fingering the star-shaped mark on my neck that I had recently received, I sighed, my thoughts straying to Dimitri. I opened the cabinet, reaching for my toothpaste. I squatted down to find it, and my heart stopped, blood running cold.

No, I thought firmly, no!

I sprang up and dashed to the calendar hanging on the wall.

"Shit," I muttered, grabbing my cell of the nightstand. I speed-dialed Lissa's number and she picked up on the fourth ring.

"Hey," She mumbled groggily.

"Liss, get here, _now!_" Hoping that my single sentence sounded urgent enough for her to run over here, I snapped the phone shut and dragged my feet to the bathroom. I slid down to the floor and put my head in my hands, thinking of my options.

Lissa crashed through the door and slid into the room, dressed in a silk lilac robe.

"Rose, what's wrong?" She demanded frantically, dipping to her knees beside me on the tile.

"I missed my period." I stated, looking up at her with wide-eyes. Her brows turned in and she stared at me.

"I don't understand,"

"Liss, I think I'm pregnant..." I whispered, a single tear leaking from my eyes.

"Rose!" She exclaimed, putting her arms gently around my shoulders. "What do you want to do?" She asked after a minute.

"I can't tell my mom—not yet." I said.

"Hmm," She pondered. "Is Tasha still here?"

"I think. Let's go check at the cabin," I stood up, aware of my every movement, just in case there _was_ something budding inside me. I changed my clothes and put on some shoes, while Lissa sat in my bed, biting her lip in thought.

We went downstairs and, since it was a Sunday, we were let out of the dorm. We strolled down the sidewalks to the forest.

"Are you dropping out?" Lissa asked while we walked through the trees.

"It depends on what happens. I might not be pregnant, I might be. And then there's the problem with Adrian..." She let me shadow off to my thoughts, and I became more and more worried.

We walked in silence to the cabin and knocked on the door hopefully. A moment later, a heavy-eyed Tasha opened the door and blinked in surprise when she saw us. I spoke first.

"Tasha, all arguments in the past, I need you to help me."

"Rose, what's wrong? You look pale." Tasha asked as she led us inside and we sat on the bed.

"Tasha," I began, not knowing where to start, "if I tell you something, will you promise not to judge me?" She looked at me curiously.

"Of course," She assured me.

"I-I'm....pregnant." I stuttered. Her eyes went wide at first, but then grew soft and understanding.

"Who's the father?"

"Adrian." I said boldly.

"Hmm. I thought something was up between you guys," She mused.

"What should I do?"

"Well, you need to tell somebody. Who knows?"

"Just Lissa," I glanced at her, feeling unease and worry through the bond. Tasha looked at Lissa, and Lissa smiled softly.

"Well," Tasha continued, looking back at me, "you need to tell your mom at some point." I grimaced; telling my mom was not something I wanted to do right now. I could only imagine her reaction.

"I'll tell her eventually. I'm eighteen in two days, and she will have no more control over me then. I'm dropping out and seeing if I'm able to find an apartment somewhere with Adrian,"

"I can go live in the royal court with Christian—I'll be protected there." Lissa spoke up. She'd been so quiet this whole time; I nearly forgot she was there.

"I feel bad leaving you," I told her, my face falling.

"It's okay," She reassured me, putting her hand on top of mine, "I understand. You have to come visit me, though."

"Of course I'll visit you," I smiled.

Interrupting our moment, Tasha said, "Go tell Adrian. The sooner you do the better. I'm glad you came to me first,"

"Thank you for listening, I just needed to tell someone," I said.

She smiled back. "You can come to me for anything,"

We bid Tanya goodbye and headed off to see Adrian and break the news. I bit my lip as we walked down the not-so-busy sidewalks to the Moroi Guest Housing. It was a little early to be up, so I was prepared to wake Adrian if I had to. Lissa and I were silent until we came to his door.

"Rose I don't think I should come in with you," Lissa said uncertainly. I looked at her like she was crazy (which could be a possibility, she had been there before).

"Why shouldn't you?"

"Well, you're the one with the baby, and he's the father, so..." I sighed, reluctantly understanding her point.

"Okay. Will you at least wait out here somewhere?" I pleaded. She nodded and went to stand farther down the hallway to give us some privacy.

Taking a slow, deep breath, I knocked on the door. After a few mutters, Adrian opened the door. He smiled and tried to flatten down his bed head.

"_Bună dimineaţa, dragostea mea, vino inch_,"** (Good morning, my love, come in,)** He waved me in. I sat on the couch.

"You realize I have no idea what you just said. What language was that?" I asked.

"Romanian," He said like everybody spoke Romanian in America on a daily basis.

"Huh," I replied, thinking of what his reaction would be. I looked around at the surroundings I had come to know so well in the past week. Adrian came and sat next to me on the couch and put his hand over mine.

"What brings you here at this hour?" He inquired. I looked at him with a steady gaze and opened my mouth, but closed it when nerves got the best of me. Noticing my hesitation, he put his hand on my cheek.

"What's troubling you, little Damphir?" He asked gently.

"Adrian. Don't freak out, but—I-I'm...pregnant." I closed my eyes, waiting for an outburst. When none came, I opened one eye to see Adrian turned to me, his blankly staring at me.

"A-are you sure?" He asked hesitantly.

"Pretty sure," I whispered.

"Well, what are you going to do?"

"I'm dropping out on my birthday, and...I want you to come with me. We can get an apartment. Adrian, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I-I love you." I told him.

"Uh, let me think about it," he said, standing up and reaching for a liquor bottle across the room.

"No, you need to stay with me on this!" I grabbed his arm so he couldn't get away. His eyes fell to my hand on his arm, and he gently pulled it away.

"Just settle down," He mumbled. My mouth fell open.

"You're going to leave me, aren't you?" I cried, standing up.

"What?! No! I-" He started, but I cut him off.

"I don't want to hear it. Your great-aunt was right—Moroi men don't want Damphirs," I said, laughing bitterly. I wheeled around and headed for the door.

"Rose, Wait!" Adrian leapt up and grabbed my arm. I swatted him away.

"Don't touch me!" I shouted.

"Just let me talk to you, you're overreacting!" He shouted back pleadingly. I just glared at him.

"I can't believe you'd do this." I shook my head before storming out the door, causing a startled Lissa to jump up from her position on a bench down the hall.

"Rose! Come back!" Lissa yelled after me.

I ran to get away, disgusted that Adrian would even consider leaving me like this. Tears blurring my vision, I ran out the building, ignoring the shouts trailing after me.

**Hmm. What is Rose to do now? Review and find out..... **


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry FOR The lateness of this chapter, I got a little lazy. oh. And on a side note, make sure to read the AN at the bottom, I have a question about Dream Walker that I need you guys' opinions on. Thank ya! ;)**

After a seemingly endless evening of pissing and moaning to myself about Adrian and his sudden betrayal, I expertly snuck out of my dorm building and slipped out into the predawn light. The moon hung low and bright, it's crescent shape ghostly and distorted by the wispy silver clouds that swirled among the quickly disappearing stars. I tugged my coat tighter against my body as I shuffled along the nearly deserted cobblestone sidewalk underneath the looming shadows of the surrounding forest.

My tired eyes wandered to the edge of the trees and I knew that somewhere in the shadowy depths of the pines, a warm cabin was safely tucked away into the night—said cabin was most-likely occupied by a near-snoozing Tasha Ozera at he moment. My thoughts strayed absentmindedly to the lingering memories of last Christmas when she had hosted a get-together at the cabin. Those were such lighter, easier times...

I remembered that I had gotten mad at Dimitri several days prior to that concerning his so-called self control, and acted childishly by kissing him in the practice room to prove my point. My lips burned meekly in the cool breeze as I remembered the feel of his mouth on mine. A warm shiver crawled drunkenly down my spine as his phantom-hands traced the contours of my body as if he was with m,e this very moment.

A cold, harsh part of my mind scolded the longing half for wanting what I could never have again. Hot tears sprang to my eyes at the thought of Dimitri laying cold, motionless and well dressed six feet underground somewhere in Russia. I walked on, closing my eyes, telling myself to choke back the tears because it seemed foolish to cry over Dimitri when I'd already moved so far ahead in life, even after such a short time.

But I still couldn't help but with that he was still with me now. I would go to him and gush out all my problems. He would be ashamed at me for my lack of guard over getting pregnant, but he'd understand. He always did...

I allowed my thoughts to scamper away once more, but was interrupted when the sharp sound of a twig breaking under the weight of something shattered the still silence of the air around me. My eyes opened and I turned to the trees, but my enhanced eyes could see nothing harmful in the bushes. IO warily shrugged it off and kept walking. After a few steps, I heart leaves rustling, and my heartbeat sped up. Not wanting to find out what was lurking in the foliage (even if it was something deadly, I wouldn't be able to fight it anyway, not in my condition), I turned sharply on my heel and raced as fast as I could back to my dorm.

I laughed and shook my head as I climbed the stairs at the thought of me, the novice who had decapitated Strigoi, was frightened by what was most-likely a rambunctious squirrel. Suddenly aware of how tired I was, I stripped down to pajamas and flopped down into bed and turned off the light. I pulled the covers close to my chin and with one last fleeting thought of Adrian, I drifted off into a fitful sleep.

My alrm clock woke me up at 7:30pm and I unwillingly rolled out of my warm, cozy bed. I stumbled to the bathroom and readied myself to get a shower so I could make a quick trip to the library before breakfast.

I made sure I was up a good thirty minutes before the rest of the school, save the Guardians, so I could get my withdrawal forms without anybody seeing me. When I arrived at the large, musty building that was the library, I went to the back and grabbed the rather large stack of forms that I needed before putting them back in my room. On my way up the stairs, people had begun to stagger their way out of their rooms and to the commons to eat. Two or three people might have seen me with the forms, but I couldn't be sure.

When I came down the stairs again and entered the lobby, the few people who were lounging around before breakfast were all staring at me in the most peculiar way, almost as if they wanted something from me. After returning their stares with ones of my own before exiting the building and going to meet Lissa and Christian in the Commons.

I entered the room, and the people seated closest to the doors turned their heads and looked at me in the same way that the people in the lobby had. A puzzled expression crossed my face as I walked to Lissa's table and sat my bag on the floor.

"What's wrong with everybody this morning? They're all looking at me like I have two heads or something." I commented as I pulled back a chair and sat down. Cristian and Lissa exchanged a small glance, and Caterina, who I now noticed was sitting next to me looked over.

"Last time I checked, you might have two heads..." she said ominously. I looked over at her like I did to Adrian the time he went all weird on Dimitri at the ski lodge.

"What?" I asked.

She looked me in the eyes. "You're pregnant. Doesn't that mean that you technically have two heads? One for you, and one for the baby..." She trailed off. My eyes widened.

"How do you know?" I whispered, my words as light as a puff of smoke.

"My power, remember?" She hinted.

"Oh yeah," I recalled, "but do _they_ know?" I asked, jerking my head in direction of the students by the door. She nodded grimly. My blood went cold. They couldn't know. I would never live it down. This is going to be horrible....

"No," I breathed. I felt Lissa's concern through the bond, and she reached out to place a soft hand on mine.

"It'll be okay," She told me, soothing thoughts entering my mind.

"No. No it wont," I defied, shaking my head. "They know." I shot up and grabbed my bag, rushing out the door as people yelled rude comments about my 'second head' behind me.

I ran to my dorm, passing people on the sidewalks and avoiding them all until one stepped right in front of me and I was forced to stop. I reluctantly glanced up at the person blocking my way and my stomach sank when I saw who it was: Ralf, with Jesse right behind him.

"So, Rose, I've heard some nasty rumors in the last few minutes. Wanted to see if they're true." Ralph smirked.

"Fuck off," I growled, glaring as hard as I could.

"Whoa! Nasty little tiger, aren't you?" He crooned.

I turned to walk around him, but he moved with me.

"So tell me, Rose, is is true you're pregnant with Ivashkov's child?" He asked, not trying to be subtle.

"How do you know?" I sighed, defeated, as there was no way I could prove him wrong.

"Well someone saw you carrying withdrawal forms up to your room, and another person heard you yelling in Ivashkov's room yesterday. We just put two-and-two together." Jesse cut in, stepping in front of Ralph.

I ignored them both and darted around them to the other side of the street. I ran ahead, and heard one of them call, "I'll take that as a yes, then!" before loud, obnoxious laughter. I fought tears as I dashed up the stairs and to my room, where I locked to door and sat on the bed before finally breaking down for the second time this week.

A timid knock on the door sounded several hours later, and I got up from my spot on the bed where I was busy filling out my forms to get the door. Lissa stood in front of me, holding a plate that had a sandwich, chips, and a Coke in the other hand. I smiled and welcomed her in.

She handed me the plate and sat on the edge of the bed, while I resumed my spot in the middle with all the forms. I hadn't realized how ravenous I was until I took a bite of the sandwich, and my deprived stomach growled loudly. Liss giggled.

"I knew you'd be hungry," She commented. I had eaten about half of the lunch before she spoke again.

"You should hear the stories they're telling. They get wilder and wilder each time I hear a new one." she said in a small voice.

I looked at her curiously. "How can you make this kind of thing wild?" I wondered.

"Well..i just heard one that you had hooked up with two guys in one night, and you weren't sure who the father was," My mouth fell open and I grumbled while she kept talking. "I'm really sorry, Rose, I would change it if I could."

I sighed softly. "So would I," At that, she crawled over to me and gave me a hug. That cheered me up a little.

She sat by my side while I filled out a few more pages, and we both looked at each other when a second knock sounded at the door.

"Come in!" We both called simultaneously.

The door opened a crack, and a voice said, "Rose?" I looked up to see Adrian's face peeking through. I dropped my pen.

"What do you want?" I asked blankly.

"Uh-" He started, glancing at Lissa. She slid off the bed and with a quick, "See you later," she slid past Adrian and was out the door.

He stepped further in the room and closed the door behind him. He came and sat on the edge of the bed next to me.

"I-I'm sorry, Rose. I should have made myself more clear yesterday." He said smoothly.

"How were you not clear?" I snapped before he could continue.

"When I said I had to think about it, I meant that I just had to get used to the idea. I would never leave you, Rose," To mark his words, he reached out and took the hand closest to him in both of his.

"I love you too much to leave you. I could never forgive myself if I did." He said with true conviction.

My mouth fell open in amaze. I had never seen this soft, serious, _loving_ side of Adrian....I only had once: when we made love.

"Adrian," I breathed finally, shooting forward to hug him. He wrapped his arms around me and pressed his face to my hair.

"I love you," I murmured into his shoulder. He pressed a soft kiss to the top of my head and whispered my name in such a loving tone, it made a shiver run down my spine.

"I cant give up on this love." He whispered, officially melting my heart.

**Awww! She forgave him! Yay! Okay. So now for the question:**

**Did you think that the sex scene in Dream Walker could've been more descriptive? Because i'd be more than happy to make it more steamy and fully satisfy those of you who want your smut. Just let me know in your review, and I'll try to fulfill what you want. R&R, darlings, I love you guys! **

**~MegAN**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay…. I'm UBER-sorry for not updating sooner. I've had some horrible computer problems for about a month, so I havn't been able to update that much, but hey, it's up now. I wrote it like a month ago, but I never got it typed. :/And this one's long so it kind of makes up for the big gap in the updates. The last chapter was mainly consisted of thinking/descriptive paragraphs, but this one will be mainly dialogue. Anyway, enjoyz!**

I woke up the next morning, feeling light and refreshed...and a tad bit older.

Today was my eighteenth birthday.

I smiled as I got up and stretched, running a brush through my hair. I strolled down the hallway, ignoring the fresh chorus of whispers that erupted when I entered the steam-filled bathroom. I greeted a fellow novice who was using the sink next to me with a chipper, 'Good morning,' but she responded with a tight, fake smile that clearly said, "Don't talk to me, freaky whore," I'd got that look _many_ times before, and so I simply shrugged it off and brushed my teeth.

After changing, I walked to the Commons, _still_ ignoring the talk following me throughout the campus. I intercepted Lissa and Christian on my way, and earned a nearly rib-crushing hug from Liss along with a less painful 'Happy Birthday!!'

"Hey, watch it, you might injure the new addition," I joked. Several passing students paused, eyes wide, at the confession of a true pregnancy.

"Oops," she squeaked. I laughed, and then turned to badger Christian.

"Aren't you gonna wish me a happy birthday?" I asked slyly.

"Happy birthday." He deadpanned. Liss laughed and patted his chest.

"I just know he's absolutely bursting with happiness inside." She joked.

"Uh-huh," He replied, grabbing Lissa's hand and pulling her into an embrace.

"That reminds me. Have you guys seen Adrian this morning?" I asked when they broke apart from a kiss.

"Uhh, no," Christian answered, looking around.

"He'll meet us a breakfast, I can hear your stomach growling." Liss said as she dragged us to the commons.

We entered to find Adrian talking to Caterina casually ad twirling a red rose between his fingers, sitting at the usual table. We approached, and Adrian looked up at me, a breathtaking smile overcoming his face.

"Hey, babe," I greeted him, sliding into the empty seat next to him, kissing his cheek lightly.

"Hola, mi amor," He purred, turning his face to kiss me on the lips instead. I kissed him back, and he responded as hard and deep as he dared. My eyes darted to the other side of the room to see a few guardians eyeing us apprehensively. I moaned a short impatient noise and broke away. Adrian looked at me with a disappointed glare, but I motioned to the guardians, and he let it drop.

"Happy birthday," He murmured instead, handing me the rose he had when we walked in. "A rose for a Rose."

I chuckled at the clichéd line, but accepted it greatly; I hadn't expected any presents.

"Thanks, sweetie," I said, standing up to get a plate.

"Happy Birthday, Rose," Caterina commented softly as I sat down. I smiled and looked up at her.

"Thanks Cat," I grinned. She had allowed us to call her 'Cat' instead of her full name, which was, you had to admit, a little bit of a mouthful.

"I have another present for you," Adrian said later on as we walked out of the Commons with the rest of the group. I looked up at him.

"Ooh. Can I see it?" I asked eagerly.

"Wait 'till tonight..." He drawled, winking. I raised my eyebrows.

"Oh, I can't wait," I replied, grinning.

Christian groaned from behind, and I turned around with a questioning glance.

"He's not talking about sex," He said.

"Oh, really? Then what's he talking about?" I challenged.

"Can't tell," He smirked. I rounded on Lissa.

"Sorry," She told me, zipping her lips (and her mind, too) with the metaphorical zipper attached to he fingers.

"Fine, then," I said, turning to link my arm with Adrian's. "What next?" I asked him.

"Got those forms filled out?" I nodded.

"Alright. Go get them and I'll meet you in the front office."

"Mmkay," After a quick peck and a hasty goodbye to Lissa and Christian, we parted ways.

I stepped into the cool and familiar building that was the head office and said hi to Adrian, who was lounging by the door. I lugged my forms to the front desk and the secretary whose name I had forgotten peered up at me from above her glasses.

"May I help you, Rose?" She asked absentmindedly as she rifled through some papers.

"Uh-huh. I'm withdrawing."

"What?" She asked sharply, finally taking her attention away from her work and looking me full on in the face.

"Dropping out—whatever," I tapped the forms, "all filled out."

"You should at least get your mother's opinion on this!" she directed. I shook my head.

"I'm eighteen today. She can't do anything to stop me," I told her. She looked absolutely flabbergasted.

"Well she's here in the back, just let me go get her." She insisted, standing up from her squeaky wooden rolling chair.

"I don-" I started to object, but she had already disappeared behind a door. I sighed and went to sit by Adrian on the small couch that he now occupied. He put a comforting arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer.

"What am I going to tell her?" I wondered aloud.

"Well, she might already know, I mean...it's buzzing around the whole school." Adrian pointed out.

I sighed again. "That didn't help. And there's always a rumor like that I'm pregnant, if you haven't noticed. I'm branded a slut, and I've only slept with one guy in my entire life." I grumbled. He opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted when the secretary resurfaced with my mom.

The woman I was dreading the most to see walked up to me when the secretary had returned to her desk.

"Rosemarie Hathaway, what is the meaning of this?" She demanded, standing a couple feet in front of the couch with her hands on her slim hips. I bit my lip. I decided to play flippiant teenager instead.

"Meaning of what?" I asked, causing Adrian to chuckle softly in my ear. Her eyes narrowed and fixed on Adrian's arms around me, and I shuffled around to make him move his arms so she didn't get any ideas.

"You know very well what. Why are you dropping out with only two months of school left before you graduate?"

I sucked in a nervous breath and thought of how to say the words that I really didn't want to tell her. I exchanged a shaky glance with Adrian.

"I'm pregnant." I confessed. The secretary on the other side of the room looked up, startled at the words. My mom's eyes got wide, but quickly shrunk as she looked back and forth between Adrian and me.

"What?" She growled softly.

"I'm pregnant." I repeated a little slower.

"How?!" She asked incredulously.

"How do you think?" I asked with mock sweetness, really toeing the line.

"Don't you talk to me like that!" She said with all of the maternal power she had stored up for the last eighteen years breaking through.

"What can you do? Send me to my room? Take away my phone?" I scoffed. "Not anymore, mom. I'm an adult now."

"Well you sure aren't acting like one." She snapped. My breath caught. Her words so closely resembled Dimitri's that a dull ache started up in my chest, but I shoved it back before it could get the best of me.

"Well im sorry that I don't satisfy as an adult daughter to you. But then again, you were never much of a mom to me either." I said flatly, knowing that I had hit a nerve. She scowled, but ignored my jibe.

"I thought that you had at least listened to me back at the lodge." Her voice echoed in my ears.

_You're too young for a baby. You don't have the life experience for it—you haven't even lived your own life yet. You won't be able to do the kind of job you wish you could…_

I felt guilty. I realized that I let her down. "I'm sorry." I whispered. She looked as surprised as I was.

"I'm leaving, mom," I stole a quick and hopeful glance at Adrian, but then looked back at her. "And Adrain's coming too. I love him." I said sincerely. She looked between Adrian and I again and laughed humorlessly.

"You'll only be with him if Queen Tatiana decides not to send you to a damphir commune. You know for a fact that she doesn't like you." She said smugly. I grimaced; I really didn't want to tell the Queen. Adrian saw the look on my face and understood.

"Don't worry, babe, I'll tell her." He murmured in my ear.

"You know," My mom pointed out, "He won't always be there to help you. I thought that your father would stay, but I guess we all know how that came out." She ended the conversation sourly and left the room without another word. Her last sentence left me thinking: Would Adrian leave me? No. I though. He promised he wouldn't. Once again, because he knew me so well, he put an arm around my shoulders and helped me up.

"Don't listen to her, Rose. I told you that I'll stay with you. Forever, if that's what you want." I smiled and kissed him on the cheek as he walked me back to the front desk.

------

After everything was cleared up and I was dismissed, Adrian walked with me back to my dorm so I could pack up my belongings. I was allowed to stay on campus as long as I followed the Guest rules. Adrian agreed to help me pack, just like the nice guy he was. Sure, he could be arrogant and annoying, but I still loved him.

While I was packing up my stuff on the other side of the room, Adrian was rifling through my closet and putting the last few garments in the final box. He unearthed the short glittery pink and black dress from Halloween last year. He held it up gingerly and raised an eyebrow quizzically as I set a smaller box on the bed and prepared to take the few pictures I had on the walls down. I laughed at his look and he cracked a smile.

"Do I want to know how you got this—or what it was for?" He asked cautiously. Still chuckling, I untacked the picture of Lissa and me in our fairy getups and flicked it at him. He looked at it and raised both eyebrows.

"And whose idea was this?" He asked, setting the picture aside.

"Lissa's, of course. I only did it because I wanted the candy—and she's my best friend." I taped up the box I had on the bed. He put the dress in the box, with the picture on top, and closed it. I flopped back on the bed and he laid next to me.

"Can I stay in your room until we get a place?" I asked, turning my head to look at him.

"Of course you can," He said with a smile. "But we have to get someone to help me carry these boxes, considering that you really shouldn't do any heavy lifting for a while."

"Eddie and Christian?" I wondered aloud. He nodded.

"They'll help." He agreed, and we stood up to go find them.

It wasn't hard. I used the bond quickly to find Lissa, who was with Christian in the library, and Eddie was in the background, playing Guard while the couple chatted. We arrived at the library and Lissa's smile brightened even more when I entered. Christian looked up and gave a half-smile, while Eddie lost concentration on the task he had set and his eyes went immediately to my lower stomach. Well, he had apparently heard the news.

"Hey, guys." I greeted as I pulled up a chair and sat next to Eddie, who was standing next to the table where they were seated. Adrian stood behind me and put his hands on my shoulders.

"Happy birthday, Hathaway." Eddie beamed. I was happy about the camaraderie we had formed in Spokane. Not that we weren't friends before, but that experience had brought us all together in a way that none other could've.

"Thank you!" I grinned back, happy that he remembered—or maybe Lissa reminded him.

"So what brings you to the table of scholars?" Christian asked flippantly. I narrowed my eyes, but I couldn't get my face to look mad enough. I just couldn't keep myself from smiling.

"I need some strong-man help." I said. Eddie laughed.

"Why do you need someone strong? Have you been faking all of that hidden strength in that girly body of yours?"

"Ha-ha." I replied dryly. "I need some boxes move, and, sadly, Adrian isn't capable of carrying them all at once. They all looked at me.

"Why do you need boxes moved?" Liss asked.

"Well I'm not allowed to stay in my dorm, so Adrian offered a side of his bed for a couple days." Christian got a wicked glint in his eye.

"I'll bet he won't mind that." He said smoothly.

"No I won't. I'm actually looking forward to it." Adrian laughed, and I hit him playfully in the stomach from my spot in the chair.

"Nevermind you're fun-filled night life," Eddie interrupted, "Why can't you stay in your dorm?"

I looked at Liss, surprised that she hadn't told him. She often had a hard time keeping things in. She shrugged.

"I'm leaving the Academy." I told Eddie. His face looked shocked at first, but then it fell glumly.

"So it's true?" He asked, gesturing to my hidden abdomen. I nodded.

"There's no way I can stay with two months left in school and this condition. Kirova will kick me out anyway once it gets confirmed to the teachers. I'd rather leave on my own accord than have her send me."

"Will you come to graduation?" He asked. I smiled big.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." I said.

After some idle chit-chat, the guys agreed to help move boxes across campus while Liss and I lagged behind and talked about nothing in particular. When the guys were done and we were standing outside the guest housing building, Adrian and I said by to everyone and thanked Eddie and Christian for their help before linking hands and heading off the opposite direction.

Earning more than enough stares from early-prowling students, we headed to the mingling area near the quad. A group of Freshmen moved when we sat at a stone bench and sat on the opposite side, heads close together and mouths whispering frantically as they stole glances at us. I sighed.

"They're so unwelcoming." I droned. Adrian placed a hand on my thigh.

"Don't worry, love, we'll be out of here soon," He promised. That sparked an earlier conversation.

"Don't you have a present for me?" I asked, looking up eagerly.

"I'm getting there," He said." I just wanted to give you a chance to sit sown for a minute. You haven't stopped all day, and I don't; want you to overwork yourself.

":You're so sweet." I leaned over and gave him a hug. "I'm glad to have you."

"Come on," He said smiling, pulling my hand gently and leading me near the front office.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked, puzzled as we moved closer near the front.

"Out to dinner. And the second stop is a surprise." He said. I stopped walking.

"Am I underdressed?" I asked softly. Knowing Adrian, he was bound to take me somewhere fancy. He chuckled, running his eyes over my outfit of jeans and a white eyelet lace shirt.

"You're perfect." He answered as he led me to a sleek black car. He opened the door for me and I slid into the silky leather seat as he entered on the driver's side. I smiled quietly to myself as he pulled the car past the guardians by the gate and exited onto the winding highway about a mile out.

We chatted occasionally along the way; Adrian held my hand on the seat's middle console and rubbed soothing circles into the back of it. The silence was nice: just the sounds of our soft breathing and the hum of the car's engine in our seats.

It was about 8:45pm in Missoula and the small city crawled with cars and people on the sidewalks. The lights of the stores and signs and cars all reflected off of the windows and the effect made the inside of the car glow with a hint of color. Adrian pulled smoothly into the parking lot of a small restaurant near a local park. He held the door open for me and we entered a dimly-lit room that smelled of coffee and freshly baked bread. The walls were a dark yellow with dark wood accents and modern-looking tables and chairs were scattered around the room, and a pair of French doors in the back led out to what I guessed was an outdoor patio with more tables.

Adrian took my hand and we went to the doors at the back, which opened up to a quaint little area with a babbling fountain and a few glass-topped iron tables. I chose the one closest to the fountain and we sat down. I took in my surroundings, and noticed a small green vine that was halfway wrapped up one of the table legs with a unopened flower bud on top. Adrian followed my gaze to the sad vine and frowned, staring at the plant very focused on whatever he wanted to do. After a moment, the vine wrapped farther up the leg and blossomed flowers that smelled sweet and light; I recognized them as jasmine.

"Much better." He commented when he looked back up, smiling at the look of wonder on my face. He reached across the table and took my hand just as a waitress emerged from the other side of the doors.

"Hi, my name's Wendy and I'll be your server tonight." The perky-looking redhead said. "Could I get you something to drink?" She flashed a too-warm smile towards Adrian when she thought I wasn't paying attention. I narrowed my eyes.

"I'll have a glass of your house wine," Adrian ordered, returning her smile with a much more appropriate polite one.

"And wine for you, too, ma'am?" She turned to me. I shook my head.

"No, thank you, I'll just have a glass of sweet tea, please." I answered. No drinking for me. She scrawled it out on a note pad and with a promise to be back shortly; she turned around and went back inside. I was staring absentmindedly at the twinkling lights that were wrapped gracefully around the trees behind Adrian's head before he asked a question.

"Do you like it?" He asked softly, interrupting my daze.

"Hm?" I asked, focusing my gaze back on him.

"The restaurant." He prompted.

"Oh yes, It's really cute. I expected something fancier, knowing you." I joked.

"Well I know what you like. You wouldn't have been comfortable somewhere fancy." He answered.

Wendy the redhead came back with our drinks and took my order of chicken soup and a salad, and Adrian's order of an extra-rare steak and a salad as well. We sipped our drinks quietly, listening to the soft tinkle of the water trickling from the fountain, and the barely audible chatter from the doors behind us. An owl hooted softly in a tree near us, but I couldn't pinpoint where.

"I love you so much," He murmured suddenly, taking my hand again. I looked up and met his eyes, the emotion in his eyes shining stronger than the words.

"I know you do. If not we wouldn't be here." I leaned across the table and kissed him lightly for a minute.

After a minute or two, a polite but persistent throat clearing sounded. We snapped apart to see Wendy standing a foot beside the table with our food. She was glaring at me. I leveled her gaze and raised my eyebrows expectantly.

She blushed and sputtered out some words that I didn't catch. I shared a look and a glace with Adrian, because apparently he had caught onto the fact that our waitress for the evening had a minor crush on him. He flashed me a swift wink before turning his attention back to the expectant Wendy.

"Thank you, Wendy." He murmured _much_ too affectionately for my taste, but I knew what he was doing. In those three words, he turned on all of his charismatic charm on this poor girl; I could just imagine the look of [fake] adoration in his eyes. She blushed deeper and stammered a shaky 'Welcome,' before putting our plates on the table and walking away a little drunkenly.

When she was safely inside and out of earshot, I dissolved into fits of half-way silent laughter. Adrian grinned broadly and picked up his glass of wine, taking a drink.

"Her aura lit up bright when I said that. It was cute." He said.

"It was a little mean—but you probably just made her night." I pointed out.

He laughed. "I think I might've made yours, too, judging by how amusing you found that."

"My day was already made. You just added to it." I replied, spooning up some soup and blowing on it gently.

"Thank you for letting me take you out tonight." He said suddenly when I had swallowed my mouthful.

"Of course," I replied incredulously. " I should be the one thanking you for thinking of me in the first place.

"Anytime, Rose." He said, reaching out under the table to rub my thigh softly before turning his attention to the bloody stake on the plate in front of him.

We finished our dinner—or rather late lunch in the vampire world—and when Wendy came back with the check, I could barely keep from giggling. Adrian silenced me with a look and a smile, though. He paid the bill and we walked back to the car. I was anxious to find out where we were going next.

As we drove down the streets of downtown Missoula, I took notice of the shops around where we had eaten. He pulled into a parking lot outside of a large building with many floors and windows. I glanced at the sign outside the door and back at him with a big grin.

"Seriously?" I asked with a laugh.

"Seriously," He answered, turning off the car and coming around to open my door for me. I laughed and followed him through the automatic doors of a smaller building off to the side of the larger one and sat on a squishy couch as he talked to the receptionist behind a counter. After a couple minutes and a few signatures, he led me back outside and to another building and up a flight of stairs before pulling a key out of his pocket and opening the door to our new apartment.

I had no idea how he managed to get this, but I didn't care. It was amazing. I walked through the door and took it all in: a black leather couch was stationed on dark hardwood floor about seven feet in front of me with a large TV in front of it. A breakfast bar and a small white tiled kitchen followed it. To the right of the bar was a wide hallway, and I itched to see what was next. I turned into it and went to the first door I saw, which was to my right, and entered a spacious bedroom with a king-sized bed with white feather duvet covers and another TV opposite of it; a closet and a dresser were on the right side of the bed. I went to the second door and entered a cool marble-tiled, modern bathroom with a shower and a tub. I spun around to see Adrian grinning broadly as he leaned against the wall in the entrance to the hallway. I dashed forward and flung my arms around him, hugging him tightly. He laughed and hugged me back.

"You like it?" He asked. It was a stupid question.

"I love it!" I said, my voice muffled against his shoulder.

"We can come back tomorrow. But we have to get back—it's getting a little late." He said. I sighed, but let him lock the door and lead me out to the car.

We drove along the street, and I remembered a small store that I wanted to stop at before we left.

"Could you stop here really quickly?" I asked Adrian. He looked at me with a ouzzled look, but stopped anyway. "Be right back." I ran in, got what I needed, and came back. I closed the car door behind me and Adrian glanced into the bag I sat on the seat between us.

"Ah," He said, now understanding why I wanted to stop now and not tomorrow. I smiled humbly, and he drove back to the academy.

I must have dozed off because the next thing I knew, Adrian was rubbing my arm and waking me up when we had arrived about two hours later. I smiled sleepily.

"Sorry." I apologized.

"No need," He assured me, taking my hand and helping my drowsy body out of the car. "You had a long day." I shrugged and I grabbed my bag before we headed back to his room. I flopped down on Adrian's bed as he poured himself a drink.

"Why am I so tired?" I moaned, throwing an arm over my eyes.

"Well, babe, you're pregnant. I hear that comes with the package." He said. I laughed and got up to change into some pajamas. I pulled back the covers and crawled between them, yawning and preparing for sleep. Adrian got in beside me and pushed a strand of hair away from my forehead.

"Goodnight, Rose. I love you." He said tenderly.

"Love you too." I replied. "You know, Adrian," He turned to look at me. "That was the best birthday ever."

He smiled softly. "I'm glad." The last thing I saw was him leaning forward to kiss my temple before I fell asleep.

**O.M.G. that was like, 11 pages long. I'm so tired right now. *yawn* that took me forever, so you better review… haha. Just kidding. Well, actually, I'm not. Please review. I'd be a very happy camper! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys. :D Thanks so much for your comments on the last chapter, I really appreciate them. This chap will be a little boring. Kinda like a filler chapter, you know? And you get to find out what was in the bag Rose got. ;) R&R **

I resisted the urge to growl under my breath at the miniscule pink plus sign that was practically glaring up at me. I sighed instead. It was about seven thirty at night and I had just got up. I went to bed early at midnight, and slept later than I should have. Adrian had been up for a while and was probably lounging on the bed with a drink.

I stared at the pregnancy test for a bit longer and halfway sat on the counter of the sink until a know sounded at the door.

"Rose?" Adrian called a little cautiously. "You okay?" I guess I had been in there long enough for him to start to worry.

"Yeah," I answered, going to open the door. "I'm fine. I think." I swung the door open to see Adrian standing there with a drink in one hand and had the other running through his messy hair.

"How can you only think you're fine?" He asked, but then focused his gaze to the right of me, "What's wrong? Your aura's all messed up." In answer, I held the stupid test in front to me with the pink sign facing for all to see.

"Ah…" He sighed, understanding filling his handsome face. "I see."

"Yeah, me too," I said dryly, feeling irritable. He reached out and gently took the test from my outstretched hand and sat it on the dresser next to him then wrapped me in a hug, cradling me against his chest.

"Don't worry about it, Rose;" He murmured in my ear, "it'll be okay."

"No it won't," I grumbled into his shoulder, wanting to cry and feeling like a sad five-year-old.

He laughed softly. "Don't be a pessimist. I'll be here to help you through it." He promised. I looked up and smiled just a little.

"Thank you." I whispered. My stomach growled loudly and I laughed, my mood lifting suddenly "I'm hungry."

I traded my oversized shirt and cotton shorts for some jeans and a t shirt so I could go to breakfast. I ran a brush through my hair and pulled it back in a ponytail and grabbed my jacket as I walked past an open box of my clothes. I met Adrian by the door and we walked out to the commons together. Even though breakfast was over and classes had already started, there was occasionally some doughnuts or juice of some sort left out for the stragglers who were late getting up.

We entered to see Alberta standing by a table and eating an apple.

"Oh no," I groaned under my breath. I _really_ didn't want to see her. She glanced up as I Adrian and I walked in hand-in-hand. She lifted a hand and beckoned me over.

"I'll be at the feeders," Adrian said to me, noticing that Alberta wanted to talk. I frowned, but let him go. I drug my feet to where she was standing and she looked down at me with a disapproving glare.

"So, Rose," She started in an attempt to be casual. "I hear you dropped out." I grimaced. I knew it was coming.

"Yeah," I mumbled. She looked satisfied that she had gotten an answer out of me.

"I've heard some floating rumors concerning you and Mr. Ivashkov over there." She motioned her head towards the feeding room. "Would you care to clarify?"

"Which rumors? I've heard there's more than one." I said trying to stall until Adrian came back.

"The one concerning why you dropped out." She said. She guessed my plan.

I sighed in defeat. "It's true, okay? I'm pregnant!" I burst suddenly.

She looked surprised at my tone. I immediately felt guilty. "I'm sorry, Guardian Alberta. I just feel so...i don't know. Do you get it?" I asked.

She laughed out loud. "Surprisingly, I do get it. You're moods are changing. "

"Well that explains it." I mumbled." I almost cried this morning. It's horrible." I told her. She smiled.

"I expect that you would think that'd I'd be mad because you're not graduating, but, I'm not." She said. I actually was surprised. "It's your choice and your…personal problems, and I can't tell you what to do." She glanced quickly down at my stomach. I self-consciously covered it with my hands; I was tired of people always looking at me like that. She looked up to meet my eyes again.

"I just hope you come back sometime." She said with a lot of hidden feeling. I had the hunch that she liked me as a student more than she let show. I smiled.

"I will." I promised. My stomach growled again, and this time, Alberta was the one to laugh.

"Go eat, Rose." She told me, still laughing, and patted my shoulder as she walked by to go out the door. I smiled and went to grab an apple and a doughnut, then went to sit at the regular table, even though I was the only one in there. I ate my sad excuse of a breakfast and waited for Adrian, but after a few minutes and he was still a no-show, I decided to get up and find him.

I walked through the familiar door to the feeder's room and spotted Adrian standing in line with Christian and Lissa as they waited for their turn. I waved to Lissa and her emotions lit up when she saw me. She was always so happy to see me. I approached the group of three and said hi. Adrian asked about Alberta, and I quickly rehashed the conversation.

"Speaking of people talking about you," Adrian said once Lissa had asked her questions, "My friend Alice over there asked about you. Apparently even the feeders get the gossip." Alice was the crazy feeder that I often talked to when I came in here.

"What'd you tell her?" I asked warily.

"That you were leaving to live with me." He answered.

"Did she ask why?" I prompted.

"Well, yeah. I told her that the rumors were true, you were pregnant, and that you were eating at the moment." I was confused.

"Does it matter that I was eating?" I wondered. Lissa and Christian had been called and were getting stationed, so Adrian and I gad stepped aside to wait.

"Well she asked where you were." He explained. I nodded and glanced at Alice, who was eith Christian. She dreamily waved at me, but was soon distracted when Christian sank his teeth into her neck. I grimaced and looked away. We just stood there until they were done, but they had to go back to class. WE would see them again at lunch. We walked slowly across campus to Adrian's room, just enjoying the deserted campus and the cool wet air.

"When are we going to leave?" I asked absentmindedly as we climbed the stairs to the fourth floor.

"Later today." He said. "After lunch maybe? You could say bye to everybody." My stomach sunk at the thought of leaving all my friends behind. But I could at least call them, right? Yeah, I thought, I'll call Lissa everyday if I can.

I sighed sadly. "Okay. Can I take a nap first, though?" I yawned. "I'm so tired." He chuckled and put an arm around my shoulder.

"Sure." I entered his messy room and immediately lay down on the couch. He sat in the armchair next to me and turned on the TV. I closed my eyes and listened to the news on the screen that I couldn't see lull me to sleep.

------

I woke up to the sound of someone knocking on the door a few hours later. I sat up and yawned, stretching my arms out in front of me and thinking about how I couldn't remember what I was dreaming before I woke up. I looked around and couldn't find Adrian, so I figured he was out and about somewhere. I remembered why I woke up and went to the door. I stumbled over and unlocked the door, pulled it open, blinking in the bright lights in the hallway to see Lissa, Christian, Eddie, and Adrian standing in front of me.

"What's going on?" I asked groggily. Liss smiled.

"Adrian got pizza. We're going to have a little goodbye party in here for lunch." I peeked around Eddie and saw Adrian holding a few large pizzas. He smiled, and I waved a little. I figured that he would've waved back, but he kind of had his hands full.

"Okay…. Come in." I stepped aside and everyone piled in, crowding on the couch and chairs, while I cleared off the table and straightened up a little; it was kind of messy in here. Adrian set the pizzas down on the table and I sunk down onto the floor in front of Lissa's knees.

"Here," Eddie said, standing up and moving by the door. "Take my spot." I looked between him and the chair he had occupied before and stood up.

"Thank you." I said, moving to sit in the squashy chair. "That was really nice." I gave him a smile.

"Anything to make you comfortable," He said chivalrously; I frowned.

"You know you guys," I started, looking around the room at all my friends: Lissa Christian and Adrian on the couch and Eddie standing next to Christian by the door, "you don't have to treat me like I have a disability." I laughed. "I'm fine." I thought of Adrian helping me around all the time last night and making me sit down and rest after we walked across campus and then about Eddie giving up his seat for me.

"Well Rose, you kind of do have a disability," Christian pointed out.

"Well not one that's like, huge. I just can't lift heavy stuff or drink or smoke or anything—not that I did before, just if I ever thought about it—"

"Wait," Lissa interrupted. "Do you even know if you're pregnant or not?"

"Yeah, I took a test this morning. It's confirmed." I sighed, thinking of all of the lounging around and doing nothing I would be doing in the next nine months. I would need to get back in shape when this was all over. Maybe I'll get a job at the Academy…

"Okay." Christian broke me out of my reverie. "Can we eat? I'm hungry." Lissa laughed out loud, and we dug in. We just shared stories of our times together because, apparently, we won't be seeing each other soon. Adrian, being the newest member of the group, just sat back and listened, laughing when needed and commenting his thoughts. He especially liked hearing Eddie and Lissa's outrageously exaggerated stories about me starting all these fights, when I only participated in half of them—most of the time to stop someone from killing the other person.

"Christian, remember when you set that guy on fire during class?" I recalled with a laugh. He laughed along with me, remembering to.

"God, I got in so much trouble for that." He said while shaking his head.

"You know where we haven't been in a while?" Lissa asked Christian softly.

"Hm?" He asked.

"The attic above the church—the lovenest, as Rose calls it." She leered, turning to shoot me a playful glare.

"Well it's true!" I objected. "That's all you guys did up there. And when I'm gone and you decide to reminisce, do it when I'm _awake._" I pleaded. Eddie laughed.

"Why? Do you get sucked into their love life all the time?" He joked. I turned and gave him a serious look that clearly told him that I was definitely not joking. He stopped smiling.

"Oh," He said quietly. We all started laughing again at the look on his face. Christian checked the time, and their lunch hour was almost over.

"Do you need help moving stuff to the car?" Eddie asked. I bit my lip and looked at Adrian, then through the bedroom door to the several boxes that were stacked against the wall.

"If it's not too much trouble…" I said ruefully. He grinned.

"No problem." I dashed back into the room and picked up a few pairs of clothes and my toothbrush, then waved the guys back to get some boxes. AS we walked through campus, I thought of all the memories I had here. And I thought of Dimitri.

We walked past the practice gym where so many days had been spent there with him—and not to mention one or two kisses. A pang wracked my chest and I sucked in a breath to keep from crying. Adrian noticed, but he couldn't physically comfort me at the moment, so he just walked slower next to me. Lissa noticed too, and her thoughts popped in my head.

_Are you okay?_

Her constant concern for me washed over my mind and rid all of the sad thoughts of Dimitri. I turned to look at her and smiled sadly, but nodded. She moved closer and put a hand on my shoulder, comforting me in the way only she could.

WE got to the car and loaded the boxes in, and I couldn't help but tear up a little bit when I said bye.

"You better call me as much as you can!" Liss ordered as she squeezed me tight.

"Of course I will. And if anything major happens." I agreed. I gave Christian an awkward one-armed hug after Liss.

"You know what?" I said. "I might actually miss you a little bit." He grinned.

"Yeah you will." He scoffed.

After Christian, I gave Eddie the second biggest hug for all of his help.

"Thank you Eddie—for everything."

"You're very welcome." He said when he released me. I smiled at all of my friends who. Because of me, were now all late for class.

Bye!" they all waved back and smiled as they walked away, and Adrian pulled out of the parking lot, and I looked back at the Academy, feeling sure that I wouldn't see it again for a while. We drove the long drive to Missoula and I was relieved when the apartment was in sight. I got out and at least did something to help by carrying a small box with my pictures and toiletries and such. WE got settled and, for the second time in two days, I lie down and fell immediately to sleep.

**Done! Not as long and eventful as I wanted it to be, but I can't make everyone happy. :D hope you liked it!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey again. I'm getting better about my updates. ;) But i need some help….**

**So it figured that it's gonna be really boring following the story of a pregnant girl, so I want to spice it up a little. This one will be REALLY suspenseful and awesome. (thank you, Cassie, you're the best for giving me the idea!!) It'll be short, but I'll update soon!! **

I opened my groggy eyes and glanced at the clock by the bed and groaned. It was one o'clock in the morning, which means that I slept for about ten hours. Again. I rolled over and groped around in the sheets for the warm body that wasn't there.

"Adrian?" I called softly, sitting up and glancing around in the darkness. He wasn't there. I slid out of bed and narrowly avoided running into the wall as I searched for the hall light outside the bedroom. I flicked it on and my still-asleep brain didn't like it all that much. I squinted around and saw nothing out of place—except the fact that Adrian was gone. I got to the kitchen and turned on another light to see a note stuck to the fridge with a magnet. I recognized Adrian's scrawl and read the note quickly over.

_Rose,_

_I went out to get my things from the Academy and didn't want to wake you. If you're up and you're reading this, I'll be back soon. Be careful. I love you._

_Adrian_

I left the note on the fridge and decided that while I had the chance I'll look around. My stomach growled loudly and I decided that I should get some food first. I pulled open the fridge and blinked in surprise at the well stocked appliance. I guess Adrian had done some shopping before he took me here. No wonder I hadn't seen him much in the week after we got back from Russia; he must've been getting food for this place. Speaking of that, I had to remember to ask him how he got a hold of this apartment…

After some thought about what I _really_ wanted, I grabbed some yogurt and orange juice from the fridge, and a chocolate chip muffin from the counter beside me. I sat my breakfast down on the breakfast bar and searched for the remote to the TV, and found the local news re-run from earlier in the night so I could catch up a little.

I ate slowly and listened to the anchorman on the screen drone on about some bodies found in an alley, and how they didn't find the killer, but to watch out. I turned it off, not in the mood for depressing stuff, and ate the rest of my muffin so I could go roam more.

The apartment itself was gorgeous, with dark hardwood floors and luxurious furnishings like the leather couches and plush white carpet in the bedroom. The stove and fridge were stainless steel and the counters were marble. The bathroom's floor was white, gleaming tile and the shower had the most amazing showerhead ever. I was just itching to try it out. I needed to ask how he managed to trick out an apartment so much. I got tired again after walking around, so I lay down on the couch and turned on some random movie so I could veg until Adrian got back. I rubbed my stomach absentmindedly, and noticed that a very small, hard lump was stationed between my hips. I rolled over to my back and pulled my shirt away to examine it. I thought that it was a little early to have a bump, but I figured that it was a damphir thing and shrugged it off.

I heard a loud bang outside, and was immediately alert. I shot up and remembered the news story I had heard when I woke up. No evidence or fingerprints, but a violent killing… sounds like a Strigoi to me. I dashed to the room and dug my stake from the bottom of the box, the little rational voice in the back of my head telling me to call for help because I was practically defenseless, but the rage-filled one told me to spring forward and attack. I crept to the front door and peeked through the peephole.

Nothing. Nothing except for the eerie shadows cast by the trees swaying in the wind. Nothing but a pale-white figure creeping up the steps, thinking that it was unnoticed. My heart leapt and adrenaline pumped through my veins. I flung the door open and lunged forward at the surprised Strigoi, who I noticed was brandishing a gleaming syringe that was filled with a luminescent liquid. That fact barely fazed me—he wasn't getting that near me. He deflected my blow and shoved me back, sending my flying backwards through the open door. I landed hard on my back and got the breath knocked out of me. I scooted back against the couch and tried to catch my breath as the Strigoi stalked closer with the syringe. I scampered away, feeling defenseless like Buffy when she got her powers taken away.

I clutched the stake tighter and got to my feet, making sure that the attacker knew that I had a weapon. He didn't seem to care, and somehow knew my weakness—my baby. He kicked me right in the stomach and I doubled over, clutching my womb. He took the opportunity to grab my arm and twist it back, restraining me so I couldn't fight back. I felt tears spring to my eyes at the pain in my stomach, but fought them back; I needed to fight.

He pushed me to the ground and straddled my hips, pinning my arms above my head. I tried to wrestle myself away, but he was far too strong. He brought out the syringe again and plunged it into my chest, right over my heart. The needle stung, but that's not what I noticed first. When whatever was in the bottle got into my bloodstream, my stomach began throbbing and pulsing, clenching and unclenching as if it were trying to escape from my body. I gasped and moaned in pain, and the red eyes in front of me glinted at the pleasure of an accomplished mission. I wasn't sure what that was supposed to do, but I think it was working.

He got up off of me and dashed out the door. I was starting to fade. The pain was too much. I saw stars in font of my eyes as my breathing constricted and I yelled. I'd never been in this much pain in my life…

I closed my eyes and let myself begin to drift away. If I was dying, it was better than the pain that was consuming my body like a deadly wave. After a minute, I heard a familiar voice next to me.

"Rose!" The voice was pleading, and sounded like the speaker was on the verge of tears. "Rose, don't leave me, I'll help you." Adrian yelled frantically by me. Adrian? I wanted to yell at him, to scream that I loved him before I was gone.

"Rose.." One last frantic whisper before I felt warm and went blank.

……**..**

**R&R!!!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Read Read Read!! AN at bottom….**

A quick jolt of pain jolted through my body and I jerked uncontrollably as I felt myself being lifted form the floor and laid down on what I assumed was the couch.

"Rose?" Adrian whispered as the poison that I was presumably injected with caused my muscles to spasm and my breathing speed up. I arched my back off the couch in pain as it entered my heart, making it ache so bad that I just wanted to die. Seeing this, Adrian placed one hand on my chest and one on my stomach, applying light pressure. I barely opened my heavy eyes and craned my neck to see him kneeling beside me, eyes closed and forehead creased in concentration. My neck slumped back and I whimpered quietly as warm jolts of Adrian's magic shot through my body and tried to heal the poison.

It was like an invisible war was raging inside my body: The poison, black with death, racing through my veins, struggling to avoid the gleaming gold of the magic that was seeping with the mission of eliminating the darkness. It was a race—to the death. Either the magic worked, or it didn't. Who knows what was in that vial; it could be some advanced combination of poisons and magic that was designed not to be healed out. I had accepted the fact quickly that I won't make it through this, but my thoughts switched course when the pain began to fade and I slowly regained control of my muscles. My stomach had stopped throbbing, and Adrian was now rubbing my lower abdomen in an attempt to settle the startled embryo that I was housing.

I sighed in relief as my muscles relaxed their tense state and the Magic that was coursing through my bloodstream chased the last remnants of death away. Adrian grunted softly and slumped back against the back of the couch looking exhausted beyond belief. I slowly, so slowly, sat up and was surprised to see that the room wasn't spinning. I took a few deep breaths and flopped back down, overcome by the sudden drowsiness that swooped over my body. Adrian was breathing heavily from the exertion of the magic, and had reached up to take my hand from his position on the floor.

After a moment of quiet breathing, Adrian pulled himself off the floor and stalked over to close the door, locking it thoroughly, and shutting off the cool breeze that was heaven against my sweat-glistened skin. I moaned quietly in protest, but thought otherwise when Adrian came back from the kitchen with a wet cloth and placed it on my head. I let out another sigh as the hot rush that had spread against my skin vanishes. He kneeled next to me for a little longer, and then I felt that I could speak.

"Thank you," I croaked. Adrian broke out into a wide smile when he heard me speak.

"No problem." He murmured, still breathing a little deeper than normal. I sat up a tad and tucked my knees to my chest, making room for him to sit.

"Come here," I said, grasping his hand and tugging gently, making him stand up. He came and sat close beside me, wrapping his arms around my body and pulling me against his chest.

"I thought I was going to lose you…" He whispered in a thick voice, bringing tears to my eyes at his sadness. "I was pulling up and I Heard you scream…I jumped out of the car and saw that—thing on top of you with that syringe in your chest and I just lost it. I knocked him out of the way—I'm lucky he didn't kill me then. But your aura was so dim… it was flaring and blazing colors, but was flickering out at the same time. I knew you were dying and I had to save you." He trailed off at the ending and let it all soak in. Silent tears fell down my face and splattered onto my shirt at his sad tone. It was unfathomable to think of what pain it would've caused him if I were to die. I was so grateful that I didn't.

We sat in silence, just reveling in each other still being alive. I dozed off again from the fatigue of just being poisoned, and I'm guessing Adrian did too, because when I woke up an hour later, he was napping to. I smiled and gently unwrapped his arms from around me, being careful that I didn't rouse him, and crept to the bedroom so I could call Lissa and tell her what I crazy morning I had.

I dialed her number and waited a few minutes, but it went to voicemail. I quickly rehashed the situation, but was cut off mid-sentence by the voicemail machine. I sighed and flipped it shut. My stomach growled, and I went to get an apple from the fridge when the phone rang shrilly from the kitchen. Puzzled at who would know the house number, I walked over to it and answered.

"Hello?" I asked cautiously.

"Rose?" A familiar voice answered.

"Mom?" I asked in a bewildered tone. "How'd you get this number?"

"Vasalissa gave it to me." She answered quickly. "I need to speak to you." Well I could guess that, I thought. I noticed an urgent and unfamiliar edge to her voice: fear.

"Mom. What's wrong?" I asked, my voice cracking a little. Adrian slunk into the room and wrapped his arms around my shoulders, kissing the top of my head lightly. My hand sought out his and laced my fingers through his while I waited anxiously for an answer.

"Okay," I heard her sigh. "How do I put this?" She asked herself; I was becoming impatient.

"Just say it!" I burst. Adrian grasped my hand harder to settle me down. He reached over and pushed speaker phone so we could both hear.

"Do you know what _gardianul puternic means_?" she asked. Adrian nodded and muttered something.

"No." I answered. "what does it mean?"

"Strong guardian—it's Romanian." Adrian answered before Janine could.

"Yes. It means strong guardian." She agreed quickly. "I heard from Vasalissa several minutes ago that you were attacked by a Strigoi who injected something in your heart?" I was confused.

"Yeah…but what does that have to do with me being a—whatever you called me?" I heard her take a deep breath.

"I know you're going to have questions, but don't ask anything before I'm done, alright?" She asked sternly. I nodded, but I knew she couldn't see me. She took the silence as a yes and started talking.

"About a hundred years ago, a new breed of damphir was discovered by breeding Strigoi and another damphir." This came as a shock to both me and Adrian, but we gaped in silence. "The first of this new breed was your great-great-grandmother—my grandmother—and passed on the gene to my mother, but it wasn't active. It passed through me, and you, but…I'm afraid that it's passing on to your child." She paused to let it all soak in.

"When my grandma had just given birth, she was tracked down by the group of Strigoi that had fathered her child and she was killed. Little did they know that her baby—my mom—already had the darkness gene inside her. We have yet to find someone with the gene to activate another. Somewhere in Adrian's past, some female must've been "infected", to use the term loosely, with the power-filled, Strigoi trait. There's no reason why those Strigoi attacked you and used their…whatever they used to try and destroy your baby, other than you having a part-Strigoi child. The Romanian term I used before was made up so people could reference to them without argument, there has only been several that are known in the world—they come few and far between." She stopped there and let me think.

I was too overwhelmed… My baby was part-Strigoi? She—or he—will never be safe from the darkness and Strigoi following them. I couldn't fathom this at the moment. I needed time to think. Was this the reason my baby was growing so fast—or so I thought? What would happen to me? Would the darkness in my baby add on to what I already had? I got so caught up in my worrying that the phone that was still in my hand slipped out of my grip and clattered noisily to the floor.

Would this ruin everything I have planned? Adrian bent down and picked up the phone.

"Rose." My mom's voice sounded softly. "I want you to be safe. Don't stay home by yourself and keep everything locked and shut. The baby's going to grow fast—so don't be alarmed. Be safe." She paused. "I-I love you." She hung up quickly and it was all silence in the kitchen. I sunk to the floor and wrapped my arms around my knees. Adrian hugged me tight against his chest while I began to cry.

"Why does this have to happen to me?" I sobbed quietly as he stroked my hair and murmured things in a language I didn't understand.

"Calm down, little damphir," He whispered in my ear. "I _promise_ you it'll all be okay."

Somewhere, deep in my heart, I hoped he was right.

**Oooh. Ancient Strigoi babies. Tell me what you think! R&R! Stick with me and ideas are appreciated! **


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